DP's most important games of all time

[XYXZYZ]

I wanted to separate this from the 52 most important games thread, and have our own discussion about the most important games of all time, rather than bitch about someone else's. I don't imagine there could really be a "most important game" but maybe a most important game to a specific person; I don't give a damn about GTA3 or what it paved the way for, but Super Mario Bros. launched the genre that I love the most.

I'll open this discussion with PONG. PONG was the first video game to really catch on. It introduced the concept of controlling an object on a TV to many people. Does that make it more important than say, Pac Man? Speaking of Pac Man, what did that do for the industry as a whole? In 1980 I was 2, and don't remember Pac Man fever. Wasn't that the first game to have character marketing and all that?

Personally, I think the most important game to me is either Space Invaders or Super Mario Bros. Space invaders created the Japanese action game genre, my favorite. Super Mario Bros. is the game that put Nintendo NES on the map, which created a whole new era of video games, which was my favorite era. And I think it represented what kind of games were to come, compared to the pattern based games of the previous era.

And where do things like Computer Space, Spacewar, and even Tennis for Two fit in?

[MarioMania]

My list

1. Super Mario Bros. Series
2. Zelda Series
3. Pac-Man
4. Donkey Kong
5. Combat
6. Space Invaders
7. Sonic the Hedgehog
8. Out Run
9. Street Fighter 2
10. Metroid
11. Castlevania

[Nebagram]

It would be easy to do this in chronological order and just say 'Pong, Combat, Invaders...' but I'm going to go with the ones that, for me, redefined genres, defined eras, sold consoles etc etc blah blah. As such...

1. Street Fighter 2
2. Doom
3. Super Mario Bros
4. Super Mario 64
5. Space Invaders
6. Pac-Man
7. Resident Evil
8. Civilization
9. Pole Position
10. Pong

[Hep038]

1. pacman
2. super mario bros.
3. Street fighter 2
4. Doom
5. John Madden football
6. Space Invaders
7. Adventure
8. Dragons Lair
9. Tetris
10. Zelda

This list is not the BEST games of all time, but I think if you took any of those games off the list , like they never existed it would change gaming as we know it today.

[Kid Ice]

1. Doom….probably most influential on today’s games. First game with a significant online presence…BROUGHT many online for the first time. First game to really make the shareware model work. Truly groundbreaking level design. Although not truly 3D, brought 3D gaming forward significantly.

2. Super Mario Brothers…even old Atari guys will tell you SMB brought gaming back from the dead.

3. Tetris…kicked off the casual gaming revolution.

4. Space Invaders…more responsible than any other game for kicking off the early 80s arcade revolution. And the VCS version kicked home gaming into high gear.

5. Pong…IMO video gaming would have still happened without it, but introduced the player versus player mechanic on a wide scale, and got gaming hardware into homes.

6. Resident Evil…didn’t invent survival horror but kicked in the door to the mainstream.

7. Super Mario 64…still the definitive 3D platforming experience

8. Adventure…introduced a less arcadey, more exploration/puzzle based style of gameplay to the masses.

9. Grand Theft Auto III….we’d seen open ended gameplay before, but here it was refined to a T and the criminal element was fun as hell

10. Final Fantasy VII…Playstation vs. Saturn vs. N64 was probably the most even-handed console war ever, and this may have been the game to decide it. “Exclusivity” would be a keyword from here on in.

[sonoranreptile]

Here are the ones that influenced my interest in gaming:
Pitfall
Super Mario Bros.
Legend of Zelda
Sonic the Hedgehog
Tetris (Video crack)
The Bard's Tale III (My first RPG)
Final Fantasy 7 (My all-time favorite)
Resident Evil 2 (Scared the crap out of me!)
Tomb Raider 2
Tiger Woods '05 ( I love golf....nerd)

[bangtango]

I don't deny John Madden Football is important but I do have to raise a couple of points.

1. Stuff like Doom, the Mario games (including kart/party stuff), Halo or the GTA games actually shaped the industry and told other companies what to do. Later games had to adapt to those ones. It used to be a new Mario game came out and you had half a dozen companies reacting to it. The same thing happened with the GTA's or some of the FPS's from the 1990's like Doom.

2. Madden ran into a few brick walls with the 2K series, Gameday and even QB Club. EA was always having to adapt, or react, to stuff that the other guy was doing. They weren't always on top of things. Sure, there was innovating in the Madden series but the developers were always getting ideas or inspiration from other series. They (EA) cancelled a friggin' installment ('96 on PSX), due to the competition having a product that blew them away, which says more than I ever could.

The genres I'm talking about throughout the post are totally different, which means I can expect someone to point that out. Still, does anyone else see what I am getting at? The importance Madden just seems a little overrated. It is important but not ahead of some other stuff. The Mario's or GTA's may have borrowed here and there from earlier games but they didn't change their entire structure around on account of another game. Crash sure as hell didn't influence Mario and even Sonic's Genesis games didn't lead to a change in the Mario games that followed it.

[Hep038]

2. Madden ran into a few brick walls with the 2K series, Gameday and even QB Club. EA was always having to adapt, or react, to stuff that the other guy was doing. They weren't always on top of things. Sure, there was innovating in the Madden series but the developers were always getting ideas or inspiration from other series. They (EA) cancelled a friggin' installment ('96 on PSX), due to the competition having a product that blew them away, which says more than I ever could.



OK where did EA get their inspiration from for John madden for the PC/ Genesis? I knew putting madden on my list would bring out the EA haters, but in the beginning their game of football was way ahead of any other sport game at the time. And like it or not sports games are a large part ofthe market.

[agbulls]

OK where did EA get their inspiration from for John madden for the PC/ Genesis? I knew putting madden on my list would bring out the EA haters, but in the beginning their game of football was way ahead of any other sport game at the time. And like it or not sports games are a large part ofthe market.

Its called Super Tecmo Bowl 8-)

and it should be on that list WELL before Madden ever graces a "Best Ever" list in my opinion. Didn't we decide originality was an important deciding factor?

Make your own teams, trades, season mode etc. Tecmo had it all, and then Madden made it popular.

[98PaceCar]

Its called Super Tecmo Bowl 8-)

and it should be on that list WELL before Madden ever graces a "Best Ever" list in my opinion. Didn't we decide originality was an important deciding factor?

Make your own teams, trades, season mode etc. Tecmo had it all, and then Madden made it popular.

No doubt Tecmo was a great game (and the only football game I'll actually play), but it was the Madden series that brought sports gaming to the masses. That equalled sales of consoles to a whole new cross section of people.

[Rob2600]

Off the to of my head, I'd say these games were important:

Spacewar - the first video game

Pong - bringing video games to the masses and establishing an industry

Centipede - the first arcade game created by a woman, Dona Bailey

Defender - established the side-scrolling shoot-'em-up genre in video games

Donkey Kong - established the damsel-in-distress scenario in video games

Haunted House - the first survival horror game?

Pitfall! - helped establish the importance of third-party video game developers and set the standard for multiple-screen action games

Super Mario Bros. - played a vital role in reviving the entire home video game industry in the U.S.

The Legend of Zelda - allowed players to easily save their progress without having to write down passwords

Tetris - played a vital role in establishing the portable video game market

Sonic the Hedgehog - proved the importance of good marketing

Street Fighter II - set the standard for one-on-one fighting games

StarFox - revolutionized 3D polygon gaming in home video games

Donkey Kong Country - revolutionized graphics in home video games and helped revitalize the sluggish home video game market in the U.S. in late 1994

Super Mario 64 - revolutionized 3D polygon gaming in home video games and established analog control in the industry

Mario Kart 64 - established four-player simultaneous play in home video games

StarFox 64 - established haptic feedback (rumble) in the home video game industry

Goldeneye 007 - set the standard for home video games that were based on licensed properties

Final Fantasy VII - another game that proved the importance of good marketing

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - set the standard for production values in video games

etc.

[MarioMania]

Why didn't Tecmo or Sega get the NFL licence, Tecmo Super Bowl should get credit

[dlopez9069]

My list

1. Super Mario 3(ushered in the next gen consoles)
2. Sonic and Knuckles(First real kinda expansion for consoles)
3. Conker's Bad Fur Day(made cartoons for teens and one of the best ever)
4. Gran Turismo 2(realistic racing)

and many more that I cant think of right now.

[Gentlegamer]

I'm going to throw out a nomination for King's Quest (quantum leap in adventure gaming with highly interactive environments),

[psychic1]

For the record, John Madden Football was around way before Tecmo Bowl(which btw was an ARCADE style football game). Maddens best known innovation was being the first simulation style football game. It was the first football game with the full 11 on 11 players with real plays and schemes and the AI would act as realistically as technology would allow at the time. It was also the first football game with a behind view rather than sideline view which is still the most widely used system today as well as the first football game with a "season" mode though in a very primitive form.
This was all started in the mid/late 80s on the Apple II.

[Rob2600]

For the record, John Madden Football was around way before Tecmo Bowl(which btw was an ARCADE style football game).

Actually, Tecmo Bowl debuted in 1987 in arcades. John Madden Football debuted in 1988 or 1989 (conflicting sources) on the Commodore 64, Apple II, and DOS-based computers. Tecmo Bowl came first.

[cyberfluxor]

My preferred list of important games off my head, roughly first to last:

Pong
Pac-Man
Oregon Trail
Space Invaders
Tetris
Super Mario Bros.
Sonic
Doom
Final Fantasy
Mortal Kombat
Ultima Online
Might & Magic
Super Mario Kart
Diablo II
Starcraft
Zelda
Kings Quest
Sim City 2000
Duke Nukem 3D
Total Annihilation

[bangtango]

Actually, Tecmo Bowl debuted in 1987 in arcades. John Madden Football debuted in 1988 or 1989 (conflicting sources) on the Commodore 64, Apple II, and DOS-based computers. Tecmo Bowl came first.

Round 1 goes to Rob2600!

[jpark203]

Dreamcast's Feet of Fury is a very important game, well for me anyway. :) It was the first commercially produced independant game for the system, and because of it we've gotten games like Cool Herders and Last Hope. And there will be more great games to look forward to such as Age of the Beast, Rush Rally Racing, Feuer Frei, and Donk. It's great to have new games for my favorite system of all time, and I really appreciate the time and effort that is put into creating them.

Plus, these games are a great way for the designers to get recognized by other publishers. Look at Cool Herders. It's coming out on the Nintendo DS now.

[Hep038]

Its called Super Tecmo Bowl 8-)

and it should be on that list WELL before Madden ever graces a "Best Ever" list in my opinion. Didn't we decide originality was an important deciding factor?

Make your own teams, trades, season mode etc. Tecmo had it all, and then Madden made it popular.

Who said best ever? I think I said in my post these are NOT the best games. They are the 10 most important. The first tecmo did not have trades, make your own teams, or even stat tracking. I know you guys love to crap on sport games and EA, but madden was the first 11 on 11 realistic sport game. Like some people said before it was a similuator not a arcade game. Tecmo the arcade game we just a better looking version of 10 yard fight.


This is from Wikipedia:

In 1984, EA founder Trip Hawkins commissioned Robin Antonick to create the original version which originally ran on an Apple II. EA had just shipped the hit Dr. J and Larry Bird Go One on One and would soon begin work on Earl Weaver Baseball and World Tour Golf, which together were the foundation for the EA Sports line of video games. The Apple II was fast enough for 11 on 11 game play and introduced many innovations that would later set the Madden NFL series apart from other football video games. Features that were included for the first time on the Apple version included play editing, the Ask Madden expert system, and a behind the defense/offense rather than sideline perspective. The game was based on a neural network with back propagation modeling NFL player behaviors. This foundation allowed Madden Football to respond to the player as NFL players would on the field. The game sold very well, rapidly earning gold disk status.

[mezrabad]

My important games in the order in which I found them...

Hockey on the Odysey 300
Adventure
Zork
Escape from the MindMaster
Gateway to Apshai
Lemmings
SimCity
Elite
Civilization
Ultima IV
Alone in the Dark
Ultima Underworld
System Shock
Arena
Daggerfall
Baldur's Gate
Deus Ex
Morrowind
Ico

Each one drove gaming into my blood a little more. Retrogaming Radio's Shane R. Monroe talks about a concept he calls "the cherry high" where playing a particular game for the first time gives you such a thrill that any game you play after that is an attempt to rediscover that first-time high. IMO each of the games listed above did something for me when I played them for the first time that no other games had done for me before.

[GuyinGA]

Wolfenstein 3D (since it did come before Doom and paved the way for it)
Jumpman (Super Mario Bros. wouldn't have been the same without this game)
Defender of the Crown (strategy war games and multi-format games would not have been the same)
Pirates!
Metal Gear
Legend of Zelda
Pole Position
Tecmo Bowl (why Madden is even at #2 on Gamepro's list remains a mystery to me....it didn't even fit within their criteria. Maybe the earliest version of Madden would fit. This game does as well)
King's Quest I
Ultima I
Skate Or Die (without this game, no Tony Hawk)
A Boy And His Blob
Prince Of Persia
Impossible Mission
Miracle Piano Teaching System (before Guitar Hero, there was this!)

[j_factor]

Why is Super Mario Bros. more important than Pitfall?

[bangtango]

Why is Super Mario Bros. more important than Pitfall?

You bring up a good point. The only major differences between those two is that Super Mario Bros. is a little bit bigger and you can kill enemies. Sure, there are other little differences but you can't have one (SMB) without the other.

[DefaultGen]

.....

[Rob2600]

Why is Super Mario Bros. more important than Pitfall?

Pitfall! was important because it helped establish the importance of third-party video game developers. It also set the standard for multiple-screen action games.

Super Mario Bros. is even more important than Pitfall! because it played a vital role in reviving the entire home video game market in the U.S. It also helped establish Nintendo as the new dominant and creative force in video games and took video game franchising to new levels, surpassing even Pac-Man and Donkey Kong in terms of marketing, cross-promotions, and tie-ins. Basically, Super Mario Bros. ushered in a new era in video gaming.

In addition, Super Mario Bros. refined and set the standard for many video game concepts still used today, like scrolling levels (not just multiple, static screens), a timer, combos, easter eggs, warping, power-ups, and boss battles.

[Kid Ice]

Why is Super Mario Bros. more important than Pitfall?

At the CGE 2K5 Atari keynote every one of those men stated that Nintendo and Super Mario brought gaming back from the dead.

[Rob2600]

What's interesting is that Nintendo originally made a deal with Atari to release the Famicom in the U.S. Atari would build and sell the system and Nintendo would receive royalties. The deal was in the works throughout 1983 and the two companies decided to sign the agreement at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in June 1983.

It turns out Coleco was showcasing their new Adam computer at the show and had a demo unit running an unlicensed version of Nintendo's Donkey Kong. Atari CEO Ray Kassar was furious because Atari owned the rights to publish Donkey Kong for computers and he accused Nintendo of double dealing. On top of that, Kassar was forced to leave Atari a month later and the deal was neglected. Because of Atari's financial problems at the time, Nintendo decided to release the Famicom in the U.S. on its own and began establishing its U.S. headquarters.

[Griking]

My important games in the order in which I found them...

Hockey on the Odysey 300
Adventure
Zork
Escape from the MindMaster
Gateway to Apshai
Lemmings
SimCity
Elite
Civilization
Ultima IV
Alone in the Dark
Ultima Underworld
System Shock
Arena
Daggerfall
Baldur's Gate
Deus Ex
Morrowind
Ico



Great list.

I'd probably also add Diablo & WoW to it at this point.

[Berserker]

Slightly off-topic but definitely related...

The "They set up the next guy to make it big" List (for computer games)

Rogue
Adventure
Mystery House
Catacomb 3-D
The Realm Online
Meridian 59

A work in progress for sure. I know I'm leaving out all kinds of genres that I don't know much about.

[j_factor]

Super Mario Bros. is even more important than Pitfall! because it played a vital role in reviving the entire home video game market in the U.S. It also helped establish Nintendo as the new dominant and creative force in video games and took video game franchising to new levels, surpassing even Pac-Man and Donkey Kong in terms of marketing, cross-promotions, and tie-ins. Basically, Super Mario Bros. ushered in a new era in video gaming.

I didn't realize "important" was to mean in market terms. I thought we were talking more about within-the-art-form; what games did what things first, and inspired others, and so on. And in that sense, I think Pitfall is way more important to gaming than Super Mario Bros, just as Green River was more important to grunge than Pearl Jam.

[j_factor]

At the CGE 2K5 Atari keynote every one of those men stated that Nintendo and Super Mario brought gaming back from the dead.

I attended that keynote, and while I do recall praise for Nintendo, I don't recall it being phrased that way. Even if they did say that, I think it's incorrect. Commodore 64 wasn't dead. Arcade gaming wasn't dead (and in fact the NES probably harmed arcades). The only thing that was dead was dedicated videogame machines that hooked up to televisions. And I don't believe for a second that consoles would've stayed dead without the NES and Super Mario Bros.

[goemon]

I didn't realize "important" was to mean in market terms. I thought we were talking more about within-the-art-form; what games did what things first, and inspired others, and so on. And in that sense, I think Pitfall is way more important to gaming than Super Mario Bros, just as Green River was more important to grunge than Pearl Jam.

Yes, but how do we know that Pitfall inspired Super Mario Bros? Just because it came before it doesn't mean that it caused it.

[tom]

Surely, the important games happened in the arcades and on home computers, not consoles (or at least , pre-85 consoles).
Japanese gaming has not much importance, as the Japanese are copiers of the western style, for example, the creator of Space Invaders states that his game is just an 'upside down' Breakout

[goemon]

Japanese gaming has not much importance, as the Japanese are copiers of the western style, for example, the creator of Space Invaders states that his game is just an 'upside down' Breakout

That's the most absurd thing I've heard all day. That's like saying, "Western literature isn't important because the technology to make paper was copied from the Chinese." The Japanese took some basic ideas and made them incredible. Are Space Invaders, Super Mario Bros, Zelda, Metroid, Sonic, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, etc, unimportant?

[tom]

That's the most absurd thing I've heard all day. That's like saying, "Western literature isn't important because the technology to make paper was copied from the Chinese." The Japanese took some basic ideas and made them incredible. Are Space Invaders, Super Mario Bros, Zelda, Metroid, Sonic, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, etc, unimportant?

They're ok, but they all been done before on USA arcades/computer gaming, as far as importance goes.

As for the Chinese, yes, they were inventors, not copiers. The Chinese history is of huge importance to the western world.

[goemon]

They're ok, but they all been done before on USA arcades/computer gaming, as far as importance goes.

As for the Chinese, yes, they were inventors, not copiers. The Chinese history is of huge importance to the western world.

So, why is it that we remember the Japanese games and not the American ones? Sure, Americans had made them first, but the Japanese made them the best. If importance only takes time into account, then the US wins, but if it takes quality and popularity into account, then Japan wins hands-down.

Off topic: I wish that the Chinese had never invented fireworks. My neighbors like to get drunk and set some off every few nights, and the police do not care.

[tom]

So, why is it that we remember the Japanese games and not the American ones? Sure, Americans had made them first, but the Japanese made them the best. If importance only takes time into account, then the US wins, but if it takes quality and popularity into account, then Japan wins hands-down.

Hugely debatable, I remember the USA games best (games on Apple ][, C-64, Atari XL, PC....), and I also think USA games are the better ones (also quality-wise). Japanese games are portrayed totally wrong (girls westernised with huge eyes etc). You USA people ignore your video gaming past because you practically gave it away. That's a shame.

[bangtango]

I didn't realize "important" was to mean in market terms. I thought we were talking more about within-the-art-form; what games did what things first, and inspired others, and so on. And in that sense, I think Pitfall is way more important to gaming than Super Mario Bros, just as Green River was more important to grunge than Pearl Jam.

I'd much rather play Super Mario Bros. but I don't see why people are so quick to dismiss Pitfall. It helped establish that a solid platform game with exploration elements could work on a home video game system, never mind what may have already been released on computer (since otherwise I am certain someone will bring up obscure computer games in reply to my post here). Personally, I don't have a problem with both Pitfall and SMB being on the list, so I agree with you and with Kid Ice. People will say that Adventure and Pitfall cancel each other out but so what?

People say they are too similar? Well, saying that Pitfall, Adventure and SMB are ALL important games isn't quite as bad as saying GTA III (which belongs on the list), True Crime: Streets of L.A. and State of Emergency are all "important" (only one of the latter three is).

[Kid Ice]

The only thing that was dead was dedicated videogame machines that hooked up to televisions.

Right...so wouldn't you say that SMB's contribution in bringing *that* back is significant enough to make it one of the most important games of all time?


And I don't believe for a second that consoles would've stayed dead without the NES and Super Mario Bros.

Nor do I. But then you have to ask yourself which game would have been the catalyst for bringing gaming back to TVs. And I'm sure whatever game that was would have made the list.

[Griking]

I didn't realize "important" was to mean in market terms. I thought we were talking more about within-the-art-form; what games did what things first, and inspired others, and so on. And in that sense, I think Pitfall is way more important to gaming than Super Mario Bros, just as Green River was more important to grunge than Pearl Jam.

To me "important" isn't necessarily who did something first. It's who did something that had a real impact on future game design. Someone earlier included Centipede in their list for being the first game designed by a woman (which may not be completely true btw). I really don't look at Centipede for being memorable for that reason. Perhaps if it attracted flocks on women to game design I'd think differently but the fact that a woman may have designed it it really only a trivia question for me.

[Griking]

So, why is it that we remember the Japanese games and not the American ones? Sure, Americans had made them first, but the Japanese made them the best. If importance only takes time into account, then the US wins, but if it takes quality and popularity into account, then Japan wins hands-down.

Who is "we" that you speak of?

When you think of the first great platform you may thing of Super Mario. I think about Pitfall

When you think about early adventure games you may think about Zelda I think about Adventure

When someone says most influential RPG you may think about Final Fantasy, I think about Wizardry.

it's all perspective and I'm sure that a lot of it has to do with your age and what was around when you were young.

[Rob2600]

Personally, I don't have a problem with both Pitfall and SMB being on the list... People will say that Adventure and Pitfall cancel each other out but so what?

Pitfall! and Adventure have nothing to do with each other. They are two completely different types of video games.

Pitfall! and Super Mario Bros. are both important. :) To quote myself:

Pitfall! was important because it helped establish the importance of third-party video game developers. It also set the standard for multiple-screen action games.

Super Mario Bros. is even more important than Pitfall! because it played a vital role in reviving the entire home video game market in the U.S. It also helped establish Nintendo as the new dominant and creative force in video games and took video game franchising to new levels, surpassing even Pac-Man and Donkey Kong in terms of marketing, cross-promotions, and tie-ins. Basically, Super Mario Bros. ushered in a new era in video gaming.

In addition, Super Mario Bros. refined and set the standard for many video game concepts still used today, like scrolling levels (not just multiple, static screens), a timer, combos, easter eggs, warping, power-ups, and boss battles.

They're both important though. :)

[j_factor]

Right...so wouldn't you say that SMB's contribution in bringing *that* back is significant enough to make it one of the most important games of all time?

No. One of the most significant games of all time, yes, but not most important. Importance to the console market -- more specifically, importance to sales -- isn't importance to videogames. "Importance" should be the one designation that isn't a sales/popularity contest. "Most important" lists are where you start listing bands like Velvet Underground and movies like Blade Runner.

I mean, don't get me wrong. I'm not disputing that Super Mario Bros. was an important game, but I find it really odd to see it get preference over Pitfall (many lists included SMB but not Pitfall). That's like saying Quake was more important than Wolfenstein 3D. Quake may have been more popular and had more of an immediate impact, but Wolfenstein is where it comes from. Super Mario Bros. is important for bringing a lot of things together, but aren't the games that created those things (platforming, scrolling, power-ups, etc.) more important than the game that used them? After all, without the former we wouldn't have the latter. If Super Mario Bros. is so important, then aren't the games that allowed for Super Mario Bros. that much more important?

[Rob2600]

Super Mario Bros. is important for bringing a lot of things together, but aren't the games that created those things (platforming, scrolling, power-ups, etc.) more important than the game that used them? After all, without the former we wouldn't have the latter. If Super Mario Bros. is so important, then aren't the games that allowed for Super Mario Bros. that much more important?

Good point. There are video games that are important for introducing concepts, such as boss battles, timers, easter eggs, power-ups, first-person perspective, etc., and there are video games that are important for putting those individual concepts together in such a way that the result was greater than the sum of its parts. Those particular video games made an immediate impact on the industry, refined and redefined genres, and created a shift in video game design, even though similar video games may have preceded them (Super Mario Bros., Doom, Street Fighter II, Super Mario Kart, Super Mario 64, Goldeneye 007, Dance Dance Revolution, Grand Theft Auto III, etc.).

There are also video games that are important in terms of marketing, branding, and popularity (Sonic the Hedgehog, Final Fantasy VII, maybe Crash Bandicoot, maybe not).

A list of important video games would include many titles and trying to narrow it down to just the *most* important ones is difficult.

[Kid Ice]

I'm not disputing that Super Mario Bros. was an important game, but I find it really odd to see it get preference over Pitfall (many lists included SMB but not Pitfall). That's like saying Quake was more important than Wolfenstein 3D.

Was Doom more important than Wolfenstein 3D?

[j_factor]

Was Doom more important than Wolfenstein 3D?

No, at least not in terms of being an FPS.

[diskoboy]

My list:

1. Pac-Man
2. Super Mario Bros.
3. Pong
4. Space Invaders
5. Donkey Kong
6. Robotron
7. Street Fighter 2.
8. Tetris
9. Ultima 1
10. Oregon Trail